Ethnography, case study, grounded theory, and distance education research

Abstract

The purpose of the paper is to encourage researchers in distance education to utilize, when appropriate, methodologies successfully used by sociologists and anthropologists. Specifically, the main strengths and weaknesses of ethnography, case study, and grounded theory are discussed. It is argued that these methods can improve the quality of conceptualization and theoretical development in research, thus contributing to the development of distance education as an academic discipline.